


Doodles & Dog Walking

by KierenWrites



Series: Soulmate AUs [1]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Aromantic Asexual Natasha Romanov, Asexual Bucky Barnes, Awesome Sharon Carter (Marvel), BAMF Natasha Romanov, Bisexual Clint Barton, Bisexual Steve Rogers, Clint doesn't have a wife and kids, Eventual Fluff, F/F, F/M, M/M, Maria Hill is a Good Bro, Multi, Natasha Needs a Hug, Natasha is a nerd, Natasha is bros with everyone, No Bruce/Natasha, Pietro Maximoff Lives, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Pretty much just ignoring Age of Ultron, Protective Natasha Romanov, Puppies, Vision goes by V, clint is a dork
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-12-07
Updated: 2017-12-22
Packaged: 2018-09-07 02:04:43
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 14,951
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8778877
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KierenWrites/pseuds/KierenWrites
Summary: Natasha has a soulmate. Well, more than one, actually. She is not thrilled with this development.Clint just wants some coffee and to pet some dogs.Steve has no idea what is going on. He just wants to draw and maybe have some hot chocolate.Bucky doesn't even care. Everyone can fuck off. Except Steve. He likes Steve.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> The Avengers soulmate AU nobody asked for.

Natasha didn't believe in soulmates. She didn't believe in any of the bullshit they fed the public about how the supposed connection worked. She hated the concept of being fated to end up with someone.

Okay, maybe she just hated being told what to do.

It didn't help that Natasha's supposed soulmate was fucking insane. Every time she looked at one of her arms there were little notes that made absolutely no sense. "How much coffee is too much" or "can dogs eat pizza". One time there had even been something about archery and donuts. Frankly, Natasha did not want to know.

Lately she had noticed little drawings decorating her right arm, somehow never getting in the way of the weird notes. Natasha had the strangest feeling they weren't coming from the same person.

And wasn't that just great? She had two soulmates.

At least the drawings weren't of dicks.

She had just walked into the coffee shop she owner, the door closing behind her when she heard a loud crash and then angry barks start up.

Sighing, she opened the door and walked back outside. She hadn't had enough caffeine for this.

What she saw was barely enough to make her pause. A blonde man, maybe a little taller than she was, standing about 20 feet away from her and facing off against three other guys, an angry golden retriever at his side. Before Natasha could sigh and yell at them to get the hell away from her shop she spotted a familiar dark haired girl sprawled on the ground behind them.

Without a pause, she walked forward, shoving past the blonde, ignoring the angry yip the dog let out, and punching the middle guy right in the nose. Before the other two could react she grabbed both of them and knocked their heads together. With all three of them on the ground, groaning, she stood back and crossed her arms. "Now, if it wasn't clear, get the hell out of here."

They took one look at her expression and were practically running in the opposite direction within seconds. Sighing and wishing desperately for a cup of coffee, she glanced at the blonde and had to stifle a snort at the dumbfounded look on his face.

Most guys didn't think she could take care of herself...until she left them crying on the ground and regretting all of their life choices.

Ignoring the guy and dog for the moment, she crouched down next to Wanda, the dark haired girl who had apparently been the victim of this attack. She was one of the few women Natasha could stand and she'd worked at the shop for nearly five years now.

"Hey, sweetheart, you okay?"

Wanda looked up at Natasha, those green eyes of hers impossibly wide. After a minute, she nodded, although Natasha noted she was shaking.

"Come on in, Wanda. We'll get some hot chocolate and I'll call Pietro for you." Natasha helped the younger woman to her feet, settling a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Anyone else you'd like me to call?"

She didn't answer until they were seated in one of the booths, her hands curled around a mug. "V. My boyfriend. Can you...?"

Natasha gave her a brief nod, walking a feet feet away and dialing his number - which, ironically enough, she had completely by coincidence. V was a computer nerd and he had helped her with her laptop when it freaked out a couple months back. He had mentioned a Wanda but she had never connected the two of them.

He picked up on the third ring, voice slightly breathless. "Hello?"

"Vision? That you?"

There was a long pause, and then, "Natasha?"

"Hey, yeah, it's me." She glanced over at Wanda, who was doing a pretty good job of pretending she was fine. "You're dating Wanda Rogers, right?"

He paused again. "Yes."

Before he could ask anything, Natasha rushed ahead, "She's okay, but you should probably get over here. You know the address?"

Wow, another pause? Somehow Natasha wasn't surprised. It was way too early to be awake, anyways. "Yes. I'll be there in ten."

She hung up, sliding her phone back into her pocket. It was then that she noticed that blonde guy standing in the open doorway, the dog surprisingly nowhere to be found. He was running a hand over the back of his neck, eyes downcast. He looked like he wanted to say something, maybe ask Wanda if she was okay. Natasha knew the effect she had on men who saw her in action, and she had a feeling he was probably too scared to say anything. She wouldn't have hurt him - he did try to help Wanda, after all - but he didn't seem to know that.

"Hey." She approached him slowly, as if nearing a wounded animal. "You like coffee?"

He glanced up at her when she got within arms reach. "I'm sorry, what?"

She blinked. "Coffee. You want some?"

His eyes focused on her lips as she spoke and she had a feeling it had nothing to do with attraction.

Bringing her hands up in front of her, she signed, "Are you deaf?"

His gaze snapped up to her face. "You know how to sign?"

Natasha nodded. "Come on in. Want some coffee?"

His face lit up like a kid in the candy store and Natasha swore he looked like a giant puppy. Moving to stand behind the corner, she signed, "Close that door, will you?"

He stared at her for a minute before she arched an eyebrow and inclined her head towards the door.

"Oh, yeah, sorry." He said, turning to close it just as a tall man with white blond hair appeared in front of it.

Before he could say anything, Natasha waved Pietro in, not bothering to warn Clint of the whirlwind that was Wanda's brother.

Without waiting, he shoved the door open and practically rushed to Wanda's side, not even sparing blondie a glance. In fact, Natasha thought with a snort, blondie was lucky he was still on his feet.

It didn't take long for Natasha to make Pietro a mug of peppermint tea and blondie a cup of black coffee. It never ceased to amaze her that Pietro preferred tea to coffee, but then again he was so full of energy coffee would probably send him - not to mention skyrocket her annoyance levels - to the hospital.

Blondie had seated himself in a booth on the other side of the shop, doing something on his cell phone and sporting a cute little frown.

Wait. What?

Natasha stopped that train of thought in its tracks. The last time she had thought someone was cute she'd ended up on the floor of this very same café with a knife in her side and blood everywhere.

Yeah, she wasn't going through that again.

Sitting a cup of coffee in front of him, she took the seat across from him, hands on the table in front of her. He smiled gratefully as he lifted it to his lips and took a drink. It was then that she noticed the little notes decorating his arm, interspersed with a few small drawings - one of the sun, another of a couple flowers.

A feeling of dread began to settle over her as his eyes found her own.

Well, shit.

His eyes widened as he spotted an eerily similar drawing of a bird on the back of her hand and held his own up in wonder.

He was her soulmate.


	2. Chapter 2

Natasha wasn't one to let silences linger. They got uncomfortable and awkward and she didn't have time for that.

Fortunately, before she had to break the silence, there was a knock at the door and she glanced up just in time to see V push the door open and walk in. He was tall, lean, and probably the strangest person she had ever met. With green hair and bright red glasses you tended to expect more than you got. Natasha tended to punch the people who were disappointed with V, although neither of them talked about it.

Natasha gave him a nod of acknowledgement as he walked past her, but his focus was solely on Wanda. Which, really, she couldn't blame him for. Who knows what would have happened if Natasha hadn't showed up.

She watched as V stopped next to Wanda's booth, sliding into the seat across from her and taking her hands in his own. The look on his face was so tender and clearly reserved only for Wanda that Natasha had to look away. Unfortunately that brought her gaze back to blondie, who was staring at her so intensely she had to bite back the urge to smack him.

Unwilling to let silence settle over them, Natasha arched an eyebrow at him. "How's the coffee?"

Yeah, no. She wasn't gonna bring up the soulmate thing. Talking about coffee was much safer.

He barely paused at the subject change. Instead, he glanced down at the now empty cup in front of him, a sheepish smile playing on his lips. "It was good. Really good."

Natasha smiled. She was a sucker for compliments on her coffee. Although she somehow had a feeling this guy would drink any coffee handed to him, even if it had poison in it.

Maybe she tucked that information away for later. Maybe she didn't.

"Would you like some more?"

He didn't even hesitate to say yes. Looks like she was right on the nose about him and coffee.

It didn't take long to make a pot of coffee, which she just sat down on the table in front of him. Somehow, she just knew he would drink the whole thing. And now the "How much coffee is too much" note was beginning to make sense. She just really hoped he didn't give any to his dog.

She studied him as she slid back into her seat. He _was_ cute, no matter how much she tried to ignore it. His blonde hair fell over his eyes, which were so blue Natasha didn't think it was a real color. He was pretty tan, so he probably had some kind of job outdoors; she'd bet her favorite coffee that it had something to do with dogs.

"So," he said, interrupting her thoughts. "I'm Clint."

She stared at him for a long moment before she sat back and crossed her arms. "Natasha."

His smile was infectious, annoyingly so. It took all of her willpower not to smile back at him as he leaned forward, forearms braced on the table.

Natasha had always had a "do not approach" bubble around her, but apparently this guy - _Clint_ , she had to remind herself - wasn't phased by it. Which was really annoying, seeing as Natasha hated everyone.

"Your coffee is pretty good, Natasha," He was saying, idly tapping his fingers on the counter. "Do you allow dogs in here? 'Cause you should."

Had he left his dog outside just because he wasn't clear on the rules in her café? She'd only known him for five minutes and she could already tell that was out of character for the guy. He kind of reminded her of one of her three friends, T'Challa. He was annoyingly obsessed with cats. Maybe she should invite him over; it might get Clint off her back, at least.

Before she could do more than consider it, her phone buzzed with a text. Tuning out Clint's rambling, she pulled her phone out and opened the message.

From: **Cat Prince**  
On my way.  <3

Okay then. Weird.

To: **Cat Prince**  
Sure you're not psychic?

She glanced up at Clint, who was still grinning like an idiot, but was now doing something on his phone instead of trying to make conversation with her.

To: **Cat Prince**  
...do you know a Clint? Blonde, kinda cute, total fucking dork.

From: **Cat Prince**  
;)

Holy fucking shit. She was going to kill someone before the end of the day. Either Clint or T'Challa, maybe even both of them.

It didn't take long for T'Challa to show up at the door, his boyfriend Sam in tow.

Natasha was tempted to lock it and maybe kick Clint out while she was at it.

Before she could get up the door was closing behind them, an unusually wide grin on T'Challa's face. She really wanted to punch him and he hadn't even spoken yet.

Instead of saying anything to her he walked right past her and stopped next to Wanda's booth. He smiled kindly at her and listened to her as she spoke.

Which, rude. Who was his best friend?

Sam grinned as he practically sat on top of Natasha, ignoring her annoyed grumbles as he forced her to move over. "Aw, c'mon red." She shoved his face away with a hand, wishing he would shut up but knowing it was a lost cause. "You know you love me."

Moving so her back was against the wall and her legs thrown over his lap, she gave him a look of utter indifference. "That's debatable."

He jerked back with a hurt look on his, one hand on his chest. "How dare you, Natasha Romanov? I have been betrayed."

"Yeah, you've been betrayed," She muttered. "I'm such a terrible person."

"Thank you!" Sam nearly smacked Clint in the face, sweeping his arms out in a large gesture. Somehow Natasha couldn’t find it in herself to tell Sam to knock it off. "Finally you admit your true nature."

"You do know that I will take that coffee pot and pour that very hot coffee all over you, don't you?"

Before Sam could reply - and by the outrageously shocked look on his face he was going to - Clint had wrapped his arms around the coffee pot and pulled it closer to himself. "No. I need this to live."

Rolling her eyes so bad she was surprised it didn't hurt, Natasha turned her gaze to the blonde man. "Planning to marry it?"

He narrowed his eyes at her. "Maybe I am. Gonna stop me?"

"No. By all means, marry the coffee pot." She had to suppress a snort at what she said next. "Who am I to deny true love?"

Sam laughed so loudly Natasha flinched and almost hit him on instinct alone. "This coming from the girl who thinks 'soulmates' is a made up concept?"

Seriously. Did he want to get punched?

Turning back to Sam, she gave him a scorching look. "First of all, call me 'girl' again and lose a hand. I don't care how cute you think you are, I will take you down." Ignoring the shocked angle of his eyebrows, she continued. "Secondly, it's not that I don't believe in soulmates -"

"Nat, you know lying is wrong."

Without turning her head, she shot back, "Shut the fuck up, T'Challa."

Which, okay, maybe they didn't know her soulmate - one of her soulmates. Ugh - was sitting right there, but they didn't need to tell a stranger anything about her either. Christ, did they even know her at all?

But if Clint wasn't going to say anything about it, Natasha sure as hell wasn't going to.

Who needed soulmates anyways?


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 3. Hope you like it.   
> Didn't mean to write Maria/Sharon, but it just kinda happened. Whoops.

Steve was sitting on the ground, back against a tree as he balanced a sketchpad on his knees. His gaze couldn't help but be drawn to where a man with long, dark hair was playing with three huskies about 20 feet away from him. 

Honestly he was surprised the guy hadn't noticed him yet. He'd been working on his drawing of them for nearly an hour. How was he not tired? How could the dogs not be tired yet? 

He glanced up again to find them sprawled out on the grass and for a second Steve couldn't breathe. His smile was bright, brown eyes light with laughter as the dogs fought to plant sloppy kisses all over his chin. 

Steve didn't know how long he stared, but before he could look away those eyes met his own blue ones and he froze. 

Fumbling his pencil, he rushed to put his things away, ending up just scooping all of it into his messenger bag. He usually tried to keep things neat, but more often than not things ended up in more chaos than order. 

He stood up and slung his bag over his shoulder, heading back towards his apartment. It was only about a ten minute walk from the park and he was there pretty much every day in between art classes and working at the museum. All in all, quite a few people recognized him in the park. 

He waved at Maria, a tall brunette who always went running with her girlfriend, Sharon. They didn't always stop to talk to him, but a lot of the time they did. The two of them had pretty much adopted Steve once they found out his mother died and he was living on his own. 

They came over to his place a lot, which Steve was more than grateful for. He had never really been a fan of being by himself for so long, and Sharon had seemed to pick up on that almost immediately. He could barely turn around in the apartment without finding either her or Maria doing something. Sharon liked to cook for him while Maria almost always dragged him into playing video games and kicking his ass while she was at it. 

Steve grinned as they approached, Sharon immediately pulling him into a hug. "Hey, Steve. How are you?" She asked as Maria leaned down and pressed a kiss to his cheek. 

"I'm good." He smiled, watching as Maria wrapped an arm around Sharon's shoulders. "How are you guys?" 

"We're good." Maria pressed a kiss to the side of Sharon's head, eliciting a smile from the blonde. "Actually, we were thinking about taking a trip to the animal shelter later and if you aren't busy...?"

"Aw, c'mon, Maria. You know I'm never too busy for you two." 

The smiles he got in response to his words made him feel warm, bringing another smile to his face as he pushed his glasses up. Before he could lower his arm, Sharon had caught his wrist and pushed his sleeve up, her dark gaze focused on the strange writing on his pale skin. 

"Is that...Russian?" She asked, bringing her gaze back up to his momentarily. 

Steve shrugged. "I dunno. It just started appearing a few days ago. I couldn't read it, but...you think it's Russian?" 

Sharon didn't answer, but Maria glanced down at it and gave him a firm nod. "Definitely Russian. I know someone who could tell you what it means if you're interested. She owns a coffee shop about ten minutes from here." 

Sharon snorted, quickly covering her mouth with a hand. "You mean Natasha? She's not exactly friendly." 

Maria rolled her eyes. "Who else do I know that is fluent in Russian?" 

Sharon had such a straight faced expression Steve was surprised he didn't laugh in response to it. "Well, I don't know. Maybe Natasha has a secret brother nice enough to make up for her ice cold heart." 

At that, Steve couldn't help but laugh. He loved the two of them so much sometimes it seemed unreal. "I'm sure she's not that bad." 

They both fixed him with looks of complete and utter surprise (Sharon) and disbelief (Maria). Before either of them even opened their mouths he knew he was screwed. 

Sharon took one of his hands while Maria took the other. "Sweetheart," Sharon started. "We're going to head straight back to the apartment, take a shower, and then introduce you to Satan." 

Steve rolled his eyes. "I thought I was the dramatic one." 

The look that passed between Maria and Sharon made Steve afraid for his safety. 

They headed right out of the park, hands locked together and heads bent towards each other. Steve couldn't help but watch them fondly before he turned to leave himself and promptly ran right into a big fluffy ball of excitement. 

"Whoa!" Steve threw his arms out to catch himself as the husky he'd been watching just a few minutes ago slammed into his legs. 

He landed on his wrist at an odd angle, wincing slightly as the dog practically pounced on him. Knowing he was nowhere near strong enough to push the dog off himself, he allowed it to lick his face, dislodging his glasses as he settled a hand on its back. 

"Shit!" 

Steve looked up just in time to see the guy from earlier snagging the dog's collar and hauling it off of him. Steve couldn't help but smile as he straightened his glasses before rubbing the soreness from his wrist. 

Once the dog was sitting, tail wagging so hard Steve was surprised it didn't hurt, the guy offered a hand to Steve. He didn't usually like skin to skin contact with anyone, but for some reason he allowed the guy to pull him to his feet. Now that they were standing so close Steve could see there was some green in his eyes and his hair was so dark it was almost black, falling in waves to his shoulders. 

He smiled apologetically, running a hand over the back of his neck. "Sorry about that. She just gets so excited." 

Steve shook his head, crouching to run his hand over the dog's head and ears. "That's okay. What's her name?" 

"Sobaka." He crouched next to Steve, smiling so gentle Steve swore his heart stopped. "Soba for short." 

Soba's frantic tail wagging started back up at the sound of her name, causing Steve to chuckle. "She's cute." He glanced at the guy, suddenly remembering when they had looked right at each other not so long ago. "Um, I. I'm Steve." 

"Bucky." 

Before either of them could say anything else the other two huskies were sliding in between them. Bucky laughed, putting one hand on each of them. "They don't like to be left out." 

"Must be a handful." 

Bucky looked at him, still smiling. "You have no idea." 

It was then that Steve happened to glance at one of the other dogs and noticed that Bucky's hand that rested on its head was metal. He barely registered it other than to think, huh. Guess that's why his hand was so cold. 

Bucky seemed to tense up at Steve's gaze although he never moved at inch. "Sorry if it's -" 

Steve didn't let him finish, instead turning his head to the side to let Bucky see his hearing aid. His smile was genuine when he met Bucky's surprised gaze. "I'm partially deaf and have a hundred other medical conditions you don't want to hear about. Believe me, it's completely fine." 

Bucky's smile was like the sun.


	4. Chapter 4

Steve didn't mean to stay in the park and talk with Bucky, completely ignoring his phone when it vibrated in his pocket. Normally he would have apologized and answered it; there weren't many people who would be calling him, anyways. Instead he found himself laughing at some stupid dog joke that Bucky had told and getting pounced on by all three of his dogs before Bucky could stop them.

Despite the tightness in his chest he knew was caused by a deadly combination of allergies and asthma, Steve was happy. He never made friends this quickly, not even with Sharon and Maria. It felt...nice.

After a few minutes Bucky finally managed to wrangle his dogs, shaking his head at their antics. "Sorry about that, Steve. I swear they're usually more well behaved."

Unable to help himself, Steve raised an eyebrow at him, expression morphing into one of skepticism. "Somehow I doubt that."

Groaning, Bucky fell back dramatically, landing on his back. "How you wound me."

Steve watched with amusement as the dogs immediately piled on top of him. He had to stifle a laugh when Bucky flailed, his metal arm nearly connecting with Steve's head as he struggled to sit up. After several failed attempts, he seemed to give up, laying there so still Steve wondered if he was okay. Once they received no response the dogs seemed to grow bored and flopped down next to Bucky and Steve.

Bucky took his chance to roll over onto his side and shoot a playful grin at Steve. "Amused, Stevie?"

Steve rolled his eyes at the nickname, but didn't comment on it. "Oh, you know. Death by overexcited puppies. You're living the dream."

"For someone so small, you sure are full of sass, aren't you, kid?"

Steve gave him an incredulous look, raising his eyebrows. "Nice observation, grandpa."

Bucky's expression was so shocked Steve had to fight to keep his poker face. "You're a real pain in the ass, aren't you? You look innocent, Stevie, but I know."

Before Steve could respond there were two hands covering his eyes and without having to see her, he knew it was Maria. He reached up and pried her fingers away. "Hey, lesbians."

Maria rolled her eyes so hard it had to hurt, giving him an annoyed look, but Sharon's giggles distracted both of them into glancing at her. She was curled up with one of Bucky's dogs, but her eyes were bright with laughter. Maria sighed heavily, dropping down next to Steve.

Steve turned a serious expression on Bucky. "Sorry, Buck, but I think your dog's got a new owner."

"You're a punk, you know that?"

Steve grinned. "Jerk."

~***~

In the end, Maria ended up dragging Steve, Bucky, and Sharon to her friend's café. Steve felt a pang of guilt as they walked inside, recognizing the interior from the many snapchats Wanda had sent him. She had worked there for nearly five years and yet...Steve had never visited. He knew how much she loved the place, despite the fact that she said her boss was "kinda cold but really nice all the same" and some of the people who came in hit on her.

Maria waved at someone Steve couldn't see, smirk in place. "Hey, Romanov!"

Steve didn't spot the person in question until Maria and Sharon moved ahead and he saw a woman with long red hair sitting in a booth with two dark skinned guys crowding her and a blonde guy sitting across from them, his arms wrapped protectively around a pot of coffee.

Bucky leaned close, his voice barely above a whisper; Steve was surprised he even caught the words. "Is that guy for real?"

Steve shrugged, but he couldn't keep a small smile off his face. Something about Bucky just seemed so...familiar. Sneaking a glance at him, he watched as Bucky pulled his hair into a ponytail, the light glinting off his arm. Steve hadn't meant to stare, but sometimes his artist instincts kicked in and he couldn't help himself. He had never wanted to draw someone so much before, his fingers itching to grab his sketchpad and attempt to do Bucky justice.

Wow, was he gay or what?

 _C'mon, Rogers._ He mentally smacked himself. _You just met the guy. Calm down._

Fortunately, Bucky didn't seem to mind the staring. He shot Steve a smile as he leaned against the booth next to the one Maria's friend was seated in, pushing his sleeves up to his elbows.

Steve saw a few drawings on Bucky's flesh arm, but didn't think anything of them. Lots of people had artistic soulmates - hell, whoever his soulmate was had probably gotten tired of Steve's random drawings a long time ago. At least Bucky didn't have words in a language he didn't know on his arms.

Seeming to notice Steve's gaze Bucky held his arm out for Steve to inspect. "They're pretty good, right? I've never been much of an artist myself."

Steve smiled, tilting his head to look at the drawings. "I draw," He said softly, unsure what Bucky would think of it. "I'm an art student, actually."

"Really? Man, that's awesome. I can't draw for shit, but if you ever need someone to play piano I'm your guy."

Steve frowned as he studied the drawings, careful never to touch. The flowers curling carefully around Bucky's wrist, intertwining with a separate drawing of a sunset seemed awfully familiar. Too familiar, in fact.

Hastily rolling his own sleeves up, Steve stared at the exact same drawing on his own wrist.

Whoa, really? Had he just accidentally found his soulmate?

Staring up at Bucky, blue eyes wide, he held his arm out. Bucky frowned, seeming unsure at first. That was, until he saw the drawing, and then he did a double take.

"Holy shit," Bucky breathed, his gaze still locked on Steve's wrist." "Holy fucking shit."

Steve had to agree.

He had just found his soulmate.


	5. Chapter 5

Natasha wasn't really sure what to make of the two guys who had apparently just found each other. Instead, she chose to roll her eyes and let them have their happy moment. Maria and Sharon, apparently not of the same mindset, had moved to stand next to the new couple, leaving Natasha alone with Clint - who she was still ignoring, by the way - Sam, and T'Challa.

"Oh, that's cute." Sam said, breaking the uneasy silence that had fallen over their table. "Much cuter than how we met, huh?"

T'Challa snorted - wow, so princely of him - and shoved Sam, although he was smiling the entire time.

"Oh, yeah, c'mon." Natasha shoved Sam from the other side, ignoring the glare he levelled her with. She was practically immune anyway. "I haven't heard that story in a while."

Sam groaned, laying his head down on the table with more force than was probably necessary.

T'Challa chuckled, settling his hand on the back of Sam's neck. "It's not so bad."

Natasha smirked, chancing a look at Clint, who seemed interested. In the story and her, if she was reading his body language correctly. "It kinda is."

Sam groaned loudly and Natasha couldn't help but laugh, even as she was aware of Clint's gaze fixed on her. She tried to ignore it, if only so Sam and T'Challa wouldn't notice, but she couldn't avoid the truth: she was curious about him, too.

It wasn't just his appearance that drew her in; she really couldn't care less about any of that. His eyes were kind, but then again he had tried to help a girl he didn't know when he saw she was in trouble. The fact that he had a dog was also a plus. Dogs were very good judges of character, after all. But what got to her the most was that he looked at her with interest, not judgement. He had every reason to walk out that door and never speak - well, speak or sign - to her ever again, but it didn't look like he was even considering it.

If he knew her, knew who and what she was, there was no way he would sit there and look at her with such honesty in his eyes. Natasha wasn't used to it and she really didn't know what to think about it.

Before she could tear her eyes away from the annoyingly cute blonde, she heard Sam saying, "Ohhh. Nat, do you have a cruuuuush?"

She was going to kill him.

"I don't get crushes, dumbfuck." She gave him a hard stare, silently willing him to shut up. "Now go back to being cute with your boyfriend."

"Aw, did you just admit we're cute?"

"I will cut you, Wilson. Just wait."

"Leave her be, Sam," T'Challa said in an attempt to diffuse the situation. The look in his eyes told Natasha this wasn't the last she had heard of it. "We should be going, anyhow."

"Already?" Natasha raised her eyebrows in a question.

He shrugged, gaze moving to Clint for a split second. "We will see you later, Natasha."

Well, shit. He knew something was up. She doubted he knew the details of what was going on, but he knew _something_.

"Yeah, see you." She waved half-heartedly as T'Challa pulled Sam out of the door.

It took her all of two seconds to realize she was now sitting alone with Clint, a fact she was not overly thrilled about. Sure, Maria and Sharon were still there with the other couple - Natasha thought Maria had mentioned a Steve, but she hadn't really been paying attention - along with the twins and V. She was actually kind of surprised none of them had left yet, but maybe Wanda thought she couldn't leave. Work and all that.

Sighing, Natasha turned back to Clint. "Give me one minute. I'll be right back."

Without waiting for his response, she stood and walked over to Wanda's booth. V looked up at her, an unreadable expression on his face. "You need something, Nat?" Wanda asked, voice uncharacteristically quiet.

"No, not at all." She studied Wanda, noting that at least her hands had stopped shaking. "I just wanted to let you know you can go home. The shop is closed for today and don't you dare argue with me, Rogers."

Pietro laughed, shooting her a knowing grin. "Normally we'd be out of our hair in seconds, but our big brother's sitting over there and we're waiting to see how long it takes for him to notice us."

"Who, Clint?"

"No." Wanda spoke up, although she still didn't sound like she usually did. Her voice was...emotionless. "The other cute blonde."

Sneaking a glance over at the other booth, Natasha was surprised to see the darker haired guy staring at her. It wasn't uncomfortable, just weirdly intense. He was sitting next to Maria, the other side of the booth occupied by Sharon and the "cute blonde" who had to be Steve.

Turning back to Wanda and Pietro, she shrugged. "He is cute, I'll give you that. Seems like he just met his soulmate so you might be waiting a while."

"Wait, what?" Wanda stared at Natasha in disbelief. "Are you sure?"

"Since I was sitting right there, yeah, I'm pretty sure." She crossed her arms, giving V a look, although he still wouldn't look at her. "Mind if I borrow your boyfriend?"

Wanda shook her head, pulling her hand out of his and instead letting her brother wrap his arm around her. "Just make sure you return him."

"Will do."

Natasha wasn't sure V would really get up and walk over to the register with her, but he did. His expression was carefully blank, arms resting at his sides.

Yeah, he was pissed.

Natasha sighed, leaning back against the counter. "C'mon, hit me with it. It's my fault, right?"

He blinked, eyes focusing on her face. "You are fishing, Natasha."

Rolling her eyes, she mocked his tone, "You are evading, Vision."

"No, Natasha, I'm not." He paused as she rolled her eyes again. "Wanda is okay. I am not angry."

"Then what is it?" She practically demanded, unable to pinpoint why he was acting so weird.

"It's..." He looked away and oh. Shit. Did he know Clint? "Why are you avoiding him?"

Now Natasha was the one to look away. "It's not that I'm avoiding him, per se. I just... Let's say it's complicated and leave it at that."

"I know we're not exactly friends, Natasha, but I'd like to think I know you well enough to at least get the truth. Or," He paused, as if unsure of his next words. "If not me, he at least, deserves the truth."

He was right, of course. Natasha just didn't want to admit to the truth.

Besides the fact that Natasha was aromantic and asexual and this guy wasn't likely to be okay with either, she just didn't believe in the concept of soulmates. Sometimes they worked out and those were the relationships the media talked about. But other relationships, the ones that ended in heartbreak and pain, those were the ones Natasha knew the most about.

Natasha thought it was the world's great irony that as an asexual aromantic woman she had not one, but two soulmates. God, she hoped it was only two.

Turning back to V, she gave him a small smile. "Thanks. I'll, uh... I'll do that."

He returned the smile and walked back over to join Wanda and Pietro, who were now glaring daggers at Steve. Sometimes Natasha wondered about her ability to befriend the weird ones.

Shaking her head, she walked back over to the booth she'd been sitting at with Clint, prepared to apologize for being a shitty person in general. Instead, she was greeted with an empty booth. Shocked, she stood there for a few long moments, not quite able to process the fact that he had left.

Sitting down on one side of the booth, she settled her arms on the table. She couldn't really blame him for leaving. After all, she hadn't given any impression that she cared in any way, Natasha couldn't help but feel a little sad.

Sighing she glanced down at the table, surprised to see a post it note sticking to the surface. It wasn't the fact that it was there thay surprised her, but the fact that she hadn't noticed it before

Picking it up, she stared at the barely legible words scribbled onto it.

**Natasha.**   
**Had to go. Family thing. Text me if you want.**   
**Clint.**

Beneath his name there was a phone number with a little smiley face next to it.

Huh. She'd expected a lot of things. A "fuck you" definitely. Maybe a "go to hell". But a "text me"? Not so much.

Pulling out her phone, she opened a new message and started typing.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys. Sorry it took so long to get this chapter out. I tried to make it extra long but I'm not sure how well I did. Thanks to anyone who's still interested in reading this and I hope you enjoy! C:

Clint kept his eyes on his phone as he left Natasha's cafe. Natasha. He didn't even know what to make of her. The best word he could come up with to describe her was...unpredictable. It was hard to read her, almost impossible to guess the thoughts swirling around behind her eyes.

Lucky whined, pushing his nose against Clint's palm. Smiling, Clint brushed his fingers through Lucky's fur. He could always count on Lucky to be right by his side no matter what.

He had just started walking back to his apartment when he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. Thinking maybe it was Kate asking him where he was, he pulled it out fully prepared for a long rant about telling people where you were so you didn't get murdered by a serial killer. Instead, it was a text he'd never thought he would get.

From: **Natasha**  
Sorry.  
Meet me for coffee sometime and I'll give you a better apology?

And wow. Okay. He hadn't been expecting that.

He hadn't really lied when he said he had a family emergency, but he hadn't been telling the truth either. He was actually supposed to meet Kate almost an hour ago at her girlfriend's bar. Kate was like a daughter to him and America hated pretty much everyone, but hadn't killed Clint yet so he called that a win.

He shot Kate a quick text telling her he was almost there before sliding his phone back into his pocket. He probably should have texted Natasha, too, but what could he say? Oh, hey. _Yeah, no. It's totally cool you just ignored me once we found out we're fated to be together._

He didn't really see that going well.

He wasn't really angry, per se. He understood not trusting the system. It was the not even giving him a chance he was having a hard time with. How could she immediately hate someone she didn't even know?

Lost in thought, he didn't realize he was standing outside America's bar until someone shoved him, yelling about something Clint didn't catch. He might have turned around and said something, but Kate beat him to it. "Hey asshole, why don't you watch where you're going!"

The guy responded with a middle finger held high and Kate returned the gesture with both hands.

Clint couldn't help but grin when she turned back around to level him with an annoyed glare. Upon seeing his expression she rolled her eyes and shoved his face away with one hand before turning and walking back into the bar.

America greeted him with a nod before she pressed a kiss to Kate's cheek. Kate smiled before sitting down next to Clint. The two of them were so in love it was disgusting. Sighing, Clint ran a hand through his hair as his thoughts turned back to Natasha and how cold she had seemed towards him. He would have shrugged it off as just a personality quirk if he hadn't seen how much she clearly cared about Sam and T'Challa.

Before he could completely get lost in his thoughts Kate was waving a hand in front of his face, her expression almost worried. "What's up, old man?"

Rolling his eyes, Clint explained what had happened as best he could. Kate had joked before that his soulmate had to be some badass to be able to deal with him and if what he had seen earlier that morning was any indication, Natasha was definitely full of surprises.

"Wow." Kate looked completely dumbstruck, her gaze almost angry. "And why the hell haven't you called her out on being a bitch?"

"Um..."

"No, you know what." Kate reached into his pocket and grabbed his phone, unlocking it without a pause and stepping out of arm's reach. "I know you won't do anything, Barton, so let me help -" She shot Clint a mischievous smirk before she spoke again. "Hello? Is this Natasha?"

Clint buried his face in his hands, wishing the floor would swallow him whole. He loved Kate to death, but sometimes he really wished she would shut up. He groaned as Kate continued to talk, unable to catch most of it. It wasn't until she ended the call and turned back to him with a grin that he glared at her, holding his hand out for the phone.

She relinquished it, patting him on the arm. "Don't worry, she's not coming here." She glanced over at her girlfriend, before waving her over. "Hey, I'm taking Clint to go call his soulmate on being a dumbass. Want to come with?"

America snorted, rolling her eyes. "Not this time, but take pictures."

"Oh, please." Kate laughed. "I'll be taking a video."

~***~

Clint hadn't wanted to go back to Natasha's cafe but Kate wouldn't take no for an answer, no matter how cute his puppy dog eyes were. They had been standing outside for about five minutes with Clint telling her why this was a bad idea before she interrupted him midsentence by opening the door and shoving him through. Before the door close she shot him and a grin and gave him two thumbs up.

Sometimes Clint really hated his choice in friends.

It didn't take long for Natasha to notice him. She had been leaning against the counter at the front of the building, talking to the girl that Clint had tried - and spectacularly failed - to save that morning. He was more than a little surprised she was still there. Surely Natasha hadn't made her stay to work after what had happened?

Natasha paused midsentence, giving the girl a smile before she walked towards Clint. Surprisingly enough she was still smiling, and Clint found himself thinking it was a good look on her. Reminding himself that she didn't care about him or their connection, he forced himself not to smile back. She either didn't notice, or it didn't bother her.

"Hey," she said once she stopped in front of him. "Thanks for coming back. I actually closed the shop for the day but I can brew you another pot of coffee."

Wow, maybe she didn't hate him after all. Two free pots of coffee in one day was like a dream come true.

Clint couldn't help but smile this time. "Sure. Thanks."

"Don't mention it. Be right back."

Before Clint could do more than take a step away from the door, the girl Natasha had been talking to before was walking towards him, a hesitant smile on her lips. He wondered if maybe she knew that he and the redhead were soulmates. "Hi, she said with a little wave. "I just wanted to thank you for earlier. I know Natasha kind of beat you to it, but it still means a lot that you wanted to help."

Clint smiled. "No need to thank me. I'm just glad you're alright."

She gestured to the booth a few feet away. "Would you like to sit?"

"Sure." He waited to see which side of the booth she would take before sliding into the other side. "I'm Clint, by the way."

"Wanda." Her gaze fell on the guy with white blond hair that had practically flown by Clint earlier. "That's my twin brother, Pietro. I'll apologize for him since he's probably not even aware he almost knocked you down."

She glanced down as Lucky settled down next to her side of the booth and laughed at Clint's whispered, "traitor".

"This little guy belong to you?" She asked as she leaned over to scratch his ears. "He's a sweetheart."

"Please tell me you don't feed him pizza," Natasha said as she walked up to the table, handing Wanda a mug of what Clint was pretty sure was hot chocolate and sitting a pot of coffee down in front of Clint. Without waiting for an answer she crouched down next to Lucky and started petting him.

Wanda looked back at Clint, arching an eyebrow. "Do I want to ask or this is a creepy Russian assassin thing that I should just totally ignore?"

Now Clint was the confused one. "Creepy Russian what now?"

Wanda glanced at Natasha before looking back at Clint. "So it's a running joke between me, Pietro, and Sam. Natasha was definitely a badass spy in another life. She's always sneaking up on us and scaring the shit out of everyone. And she somehow always knows stuff that she shouldn't."

Natasha looked unimpressed as she looked up at the both of them. "I hacked into your tumblr, Rogers. You probably shouldn't post so much about your creepy Russian boss who has heart eyes for cute blondes."

Wanda blushed furiously, sputtering out an unintelligible answer before she got up and practically ran back to her brother's table. Natasha took her seat, looking proud of herself.

Clint laughed as he watched Wanda bury her face in her brother's shoulder. "Does she really post about that?" He asked as he turned back to Natasha.

"I wouldn't know. I just made a guess and it turns out I was right." She let out a small laugh as she leaned back in the seat. "I can't believe they're still running with that whole assassin thing. You stab a guy one time..."

Clint knew his surprise showed on his face because Natasha barked out a laugh, eyes closing momentarily as she fought to compose herself. "Don't worry, he stabbed me first."

That wasn't really comforting, but she didn't seem bothered by it so he didn't ask. That wasn't why he had come - read: was forcibly dragged - here anyways.

After several moments of uncomfortable silence, Natasha leaned forward, resting her chin on her fist. "Look," she said softly. "I wanted to apologize. It..." she glancing away, taking a deep breath. "This whole soulmate thing. I don't really get it, but I shouldn't have taken it out on you. I'm an aromantic asexual, so I don't know what kind of relationship we would have, if you even still want anything to do with me, but I'd like to try."

Clint was more than a little surprised. At what she had said in such a sincere way, and at himself for actually considering it. He liked her. She was sarcastic and a little shit from what he could tell, and her apology was more than enough for him to give her a second chance.

"Well," he said with a smile. "Lucky seems to like you so that's a good start." He paused for a second, considering what to say. "I don't know much about...aromantic asexuals?" He glanced at her for confirmation that he'd said that correctly vefore continuing. "But I'd like to get to know you."

Natasha smiled, reaching over and taking one of his hands in hers. "Thank you, Clint. And I really am sorry for before."

He got the feeling that apologizing wasn't something she did often and what he said next could make or break their relationship. "I forgive you." He glanced at the coffee pot. "Now, c'mon. Have some coffee with me."

Natasha laughed, taking a sip from the coffee pot when it was offered to her. "Gladly."

There was a lot more they had to figure out, but this was a good start in getting to know each other. Clint couldn't help but smile as he squeezed her fingers and watched as she allowed Lucky to join her in the booth.

 _Yeah_ , Clint thought as Natasha threw back her head and laughed. _This was pretty good._


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys. I don't know if anyone's still reading this, but starting today I'll be posting every Tuesday. I hope this chapter is okay, but since it's currently 2 in the morning I'm not really sure. Hope you guys like it!   
> -Kieren

After they had decided to try out a relationship it seemed like Clint just couldn’t get enough of Natasha. She wasn’t sure why he found her so interesting but he was almost always hanging around her café. For some reason, she wasn’t really bothered by it, although she thought maybe she should have been. She had always been…well, not antisocial, but she did prefer her own company to anyone else’s.

Natasha had a lot of bad nights due to nightmares and didn’t often get as much sleep as she should. One night was particularly bad and surprisingly enough she found herself just wanting to see Clint. Her hands had been shaking so bad she knew it was going to be a while before she could make it in to work. Somehow she managed to call Wanda and got her to agree to go ahead and open the shop and keep everything running smoothly until Natasha could get there.

After about an hour long shower and several cups of coffee Natasha was feeling almost like a human again, and when she got to the café it wasn’t really a surprise to see Clint sitting in the booth closest to the door with Lucky on the floor next to him. What surprised her was that the tight ball of anxiety in her chest began to ease as soon as he came into view. His back was to her so he hadn’t spotted her yet and she knew better than to sneak up on someone who would more than likely injure both of them if she startled him.

Dropping down into the seat across from him, she offered him a small, tired smile, hoping he wouldn’t see through it. She really should have known better.

Clint smiled when he saw her, his whole face lighting up. But after a minute or so of him talking and her only offering noncommittal responses or a shake or nod of her head, he seemed to realize something was off. “Tasha, you okay?”

She glanced up, hoping he didn’t notice her wince. “Fine, Clint.”

He gave her such a skeptical look she had to bite her lip to keep from laughing. She really should take over running the café from Wanda, but that was the last thing she wanted to do right then. “I… Okay, fine, I’m not, but I will be.”

She started to slide out of the booth, but Clint’s hand shot forward and took hold of her wrist. “Tasha, don’t. I can see you’re not.”

She forced herself to smile at him, even though all she really wanted to do was go home and maybe sleep for fifty years. She slid her hand down until she was holding his, squeezing his fingers. “I know. But it can wait. I have to help Wanda.”

Before she could let go of his hand and get up, he leaned over the table and kissed her before he got up and started walking towards Wanda. She was so surprised it took her a minute to register what had happened, and by that time Clint had taken over for Wanda at the register and she was busy getting orders from the few people that were in the café. Natasha blinked slowly, wondering when the hell Clint had decided to tell her what to do and expect her to listen. Better yet, she wondered when she had decided to let him.

It was a few minutes later when the door opened and a familiar couple walked in. The two guys that had figured out they were soulmates the same day she’d found Clint had become regulars in her café. She had spoken to them a handful of times and learned the tall one with the metal arm was Bucky, and the other who looked like a strong breeze would knock him over was Steve. She didn’t know much about them, but they seemed nice enough. The fact that Bucky also spoke Russian was something that they had smiled about once they discovered it.

Glancing down at her arm, she wasn’t all that surprised to see a few more doodles marking her skin. This time it was a dog chasing a ball on the inside of her wrist and she had to admit it was pretty cute. She still didn’t know who the artist behind the drawings were, because it sure as hell wasn’t Clint, but she wasn’t really in any rush to find out.

Bucky stopped next to her booth, looking more than a little surprised to see her sitting down and not doing anything for once. She rolled her eyes at his expression and gestured to the other side of the booth. “C’mon, Barnes, join me in laziness.”

He laughed, but complied, watching as Steve intercepted Wanda and pulled her into a hug.

Natasha nudged his foot with her own. “You guys look happy.”

He looked back over at her, all smiles. She had to admit it was a good look on him. “We are. It’s…nice, to find someone who doesn’t mind all the shit I’ve been through.”

Finding herself glancing over at Clint, Natasha couldn’t help but agree. She didn’t know much about what had happened to Bucky, but she knew it was enough for him to keep everyone at arm’s length. Surprisingly, that didn’t seem to apply to her. She wasn’t sure why, but she just felt comfortable talking to him, in a way she hadn’t felt with many people.

He followed her gaze before giving her a knowing smile. “He’s good for you, I think.”

Rolling her eyes, she gave him a pointed look. “Don’t drag me into your sappy shit, Barnes.”

He just smirked at her until she smacked his arm and they both burst out into laughter. It wasn’t until they were both breathless and smiling she realized her hand was still on his arm. “Oh, sorry,” She murmured as she pulled her hand back, hoping he wasn’t offended. She was sensitive to touch and she didn’t even have a prosthetic as an excuse for it.

Instead, he smiled. “No, it’s okay. Doesn’t really bother me if it’s you or Steve.”

“Careful, Barnes,” Natasha said with a smirk. “I might start to think you like me.”

“I don’t know, Romanov. I think you might be growing on me.” He leaned in conspiratorially, eyes twinkling with amusement. “You didn’t hear this from me, but I’m pretty sure Stevie just comes here for the cute redhead who owns this place.”

Leaning back in her seat, Natasha snorted loudly and rolled her eyes at him. “He’s your boyfriend, not mine.”

Bucky just laughed before he settled back into his side of the booth. They lapsed into a comfortable silence, both of them content to let it stretch on. Leaning against the wall, she was half asleep when she felt a hand on her shoulder. Normally that wouldn’t have been a problem, but she was already keyed up from the nightmares from the night before and tense from being around so many people, even if she did like most of them.

Instead of reacting like a normal person and just shoving whoever it was off, she reacted much more violently, tackling them to the floor and putting a knife she’d grabbed off the table to their throat. It took her longer than it should have and Bucky speaking to her in a low, calm voice for her to back off and release Steve.

Her voice was shaky when she was finally able to look up at Steve. “I am so sorry, I didn’t –”

Before she could finish her sentence, Bucky was pulling her into a tight hug. “He’s not hurt, Natasha. You’re okay.”

At first she couldn’t comprehend the words, unable to understand why Bucky would be reassuring her that she was okay, and not Steve. She wasn’t okay and he had to know that. The look in his eyes the split second before the hug told her that he knew exactly what she was dealing with. Suddenly, she wasn’t sure if that was a good thing or not.

Without meaning to she wrapped her fingers around his and squeezed, maybe a little too tight. It was a reassurance that she was there, in that moment, more than anything else. 

Natasha didn't know how long they sat there in silence, just listening to each other breathe. There was too much, all at once. She should have just stayed home, asked Wanda to take over for the day. It was a nice thought, but she knew she never would have. 

“Are you alright?” Bucky asked softly, eyes kind, almost like he understood what she was going through. 

“I… Yeah, I think so.” 

She shakily got to her feet, Bucky right next to her. Without the warm hand on her shoulder keeping her steady she probably would have fallen right back to the floor. She appreciated his support, and even though she didn't understand why he was giving it to her, it was enough to keep her from slipping into her nightmares. 

Natasha expected to find everyone staring at her, but instead it seemed they were all respectfully giving her privacy. It was...surprisingly nice. 

Wanda was speaking quietly to a man with dark hair and a goatee that Natasha was pretty sure she should know, but couldn't place his name while it looked like Clint was wrangling Pietro and Steve into helping with the other customers. 

Bucky smiled at her, not unkindly, as he steered her towards the bathroom. She didn't think she had said anything, but that was exactly where she had wanted to go. She didn't want Bucky to leave but she also needed to get away from everyone else for a minute. 

Bucky tried to stand outside, presumably to give her a moment to herself, but she dragged him into the room with her. He leaned against the closed door, watching as she paced the length of the room. There was no judgement in his gaze, but there was something...familiar about the way he looked at her. 

Natasha had to keep moving for several long minutes until she was calm enough to speak to anyone and was sure she had stopped shaking. Bucky was doing something on his phone, so focused he didn't even spare her a glance as she leaned against his arm. Somehow, she wasn't surprised to find he was playing candy crush. 

It took him a few minutes to finish his level, but when he did he just started another and offered her the phone. She smiled and took it, feeling at ease with him watching as she played through that level and another one after it. She wasn't sure what they were doing, not really, but she felt more in control than she had woken up. It was nice in a way she wasn't used to and a little voice in the back of her head told her not to trust. 

She told that voice to shut the hell up. 

Hiding in a bathroom and playing games on a borrowed cell phone wasn't the best coping mechanism, but there far worse ways to spend her afternoon. When she glanced over at Bucky during a lapse in levels, his smile, bright and kind, left her feeling like maybe everything was okay after all. 

She cared about Clint, more than she probably should, but she had a feeling he was there to stay, even after her episode. She wasn't okay and still wasn't sure about the whole multiple soulmates thing, but it might not be the end of the world.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am SO sorry for the late update on this. I've been dealing with some personal issues and a death in the family. I am going to try to update this as much as possible and I'm definitely going to finish it even if it kills me. 
> 
> Thank you for reading and I hope you like the chapter!

Bucky knew Steve would be okay. It was Natasha he was worried about. He had his fair share of nightmares, so he knew a little of what she was going through. Clint was good for her, that much he was sure of, but he had no idea how he would react to what had happened. Flashbacks were always difficult to deal with, even if you were used to having them. 

From what Bucky knew of Natasha, he was almost certain she would try to isolate herself so no one else would have to see her lose it. 

She seemed a lot calmer than she had before, but they had yet to leave the bathroom. He was worried, but he knew she wasn't going to hurt anyone else. He should probably warn everyone else not to touch her without asking, but he wasn't sure she would appreciate that. He wouldn't, had he been in her position. 

Natasha leaned against his side, cheek resting lightly on his shoulder. “Thank you,” she murmured. “I’m not okay, but no one else is in danger from me.”

“I know.” 

There wasn't much else to say and the silence was comfortable enough they didn't really feel the need for any more words. It was nice, knowing there would be no judgement between them. Bucky was sure he could tell her any number of things he had nightmares about and she would get it. It wasn't something he felt with Steve, but that wasn't a bad thing. He didn't want Steve to have to deal with the kinds of things he had. 

“Do you want to go back out there?” 

Natasha shrugged, but Bucky could feel how tense she was. He wasn't sure if she was worried about what had happened or if she just didn't want to face Clint and Steve, but either way she didn't seem ready to leave. 

Before he could say anything else, she pushed off of the door and gave him a smile that he saw through in a second. “Yeah, I'll be fine.” 

He didn't buy it, but it certainly wasn't his place to call her out on the lie. Hell, he knew why she didn't want to face it. Even if he didn't know what exactly her nightmares were about, he had plenty of his own to keep his mind occupied.   
“You don't have to be.” 

She froze, every muscle tensing up until it looked as if she was sculpted from stone. Her eyes were stormy and dark, almost dangerous. For a long, tense moment Bucky wasn't sure he had said the right thing. 

“Yes, I do.” Her voice was so quiet, barely loud enough for him to catch the words. “When I walk in there, I can't… I have to be okay, Bucky.”

She was pale and shaking, looking so tense he was almost afraid of what she would do if he approached. There was something dangerous about her, but she was also unbearably kind. He had seen the horror in her eyes once she'd realized what she had done to Steve, and even though he was okay, Bucky knew she would have a hard time forgiving herself. He only knew because he had been there. 

“Natasha.” He kept his voice low, hoping he wouldn't startle her. He was fairly certain he could take whatever violence she might dish out, but then he would be in her place and no one wanted that. “It's alright.”

Her eyes were haunted when she looked up at him. And, well, Bucky knew that look all too well. He had seen it on himself in the mirror too many times to count. 

She didn't immediately jerk back or make a move to attack him when he slid a hand along her shoulder so he took that as a sign he wasn't about to get murdered. “Wanda and Clint are handling things out there, okay? We can stay in here as long as you need.” 

She blinked slowly, almost as if she couldn't quite understand what he'd said. She probably wasn't used to anyone offering to stay with her while she got her shit together. 

Bucky understood that, too. 

She didn't ask if he meant it, because he wouldn't have said it if he didn't, but she looked like she was ready to run. He offered her a small smile as he slid down the door and settled on the floor. He didn't say anything, but let a comfortable silence fall over them. 

Natasha sighed, looking like the weight of the world was on her shoulders as she dropped down next to him. “You're encouraging bad behavior, Barnes. I shouldn't be skipping work.” 

He smirked lazily at her. “Enjoy it. You'll probably never get to do it again, you workaholic.” 

Natasha snorted out a laugh and looked like she wanted to roll her eyes at him. He was pretty sure the only reason she didn't was because she knew he was right. 

Bucky didn't think he'd ever actually seen her take a break before today. It was surprisingly nice to be able to just sit there with her and be in the moment. He didn't think either of them got to do that very often. 

There was something about the way she smiled at him that made him want to keep staring. He had seen her smile politely at a customer she probably wanted to beat over the head with a coffee pot and the kind of fond smirk that she had when Clint started rambling, but there was something different about the way she smiled at Bucky. It was almost like she couldn't believe he was there, with her, and not running away. 

He only recognized it because it was how he felt, in that moment. 

Neither of them said anything, but Natasha rested her head on his shoulder, a warm presence at his side. It felt almost like a betrayal to Steve and Clint, how content he felt, but he couldn't find it in himself to regret it when he saw how much it had helped Natasha. 

He had been around her a handful of times before, but never long enough to exchange more than a few words. She had been cold, distant, almost seeming afraid to get close to anyone. It reminded Bucky of himself after the war and his arm. It was years later, now, and sometimes he still reverted back to that. 

Time didn't heal all wounds, but sometimes it lessened the sting. 

Bucky didn't realize he'd nodded off until he came to with a violent jerk, a chill he could never quite shake creeping up his spine. He hoped Natasha didn't notice, but her breathing was too calm, just a little bit too forced, for her to actually be asleep. She had nightmares and now she knew he did, too. 

She didn't ask if he was okay because they both knew he wasn't, but she did inch away to give him some space. He appreciated it, but strangely enough he still wanted her close. He usually couldn't stand to have anyone within five feet after a nightmare, but this time it had almost been a relief to realize he wasn't alone. 

It was more than a little weird and he was more than a little freaked out about it. 

“Bucky?” Her voice has low, hesitant. Maybe she was afraid he would react like she had with Steve. He hated to admit that she might be right.   
“I -” He had to stop to clear this throat before continuing. “I'm okay. Sorry if I startled you.”

Her lips twitched like she wanted to smile but knew she shouldn't. He wasn't sure what she found amusing, but suddenly he wanted to know, even if it was at his expense. 

“What?” His voice was rough, maybe a little harsher than he'd intended. 

She shook her head, but let out a soft sigh. “I'm not laughing at you. It's just… This whole thing, you know? I just realized we're a lot more alike than I thought.” 

Bucky couldn't really argue with that. 

He didn't really know what to say to that. He had come in here to help her as best as he could, but it looked like she might be the one helping him. It probably should have bothered him more than it did. 

“You can tell me about it, if you want.”

She didn't look at him when she spoke, her voice quiet, tone almost too nonchalant. She obviously wanted to help him but wasn't sure of the best way to do that. It was different, a little weird, but he appreciated it all the same. 

“I was in the army.” He started out slow, almost afraid of the words. He had only talked to a handful of people about what he'd gone through, and most of them he hadn't had a choice in talking to. “I don't know if you know that. It was never easy, but I was good at it. Not always the best at following orders, but I never have been.”

Bucky couldn't help noticing the way her lips twitched in the start of a smile. He was surprised to find he liked the sight of her smiling at something he had said. It made her look so much kinder than she wanted everyone to believe she was. 

Clearing his throat, he forced his gaze away from the captivating redhead sitting next to him. “I'm sure you've noticed my arm.” He shook his head, choking back a laugh. “Kinda hard to miss it.”

Tears burned his eyes as he relived every horrible moment of the day that had claimed most of his left arm. Admittedly, he didn't remember much besides the sheer cold and the agonizing pain that had come with it. He didn't remember them attaching the metallic prosthetic either, although considering it was as much a part of him as his flesh and blood arm he was kind of relieved about that. He hadn't been able to talk for days afterwards and he had been left to guess the soreness in his throat was from screaming. 

None of it was anything he wanted to repeat to someone who barely knew him. Not that she seemed bothered by it in the least. If anything, she looked like she was reliving her own horrors. 

Maybe there was something to the rumor that she was a Russian assassin, after all. 

Her voice was rough with an emotion Bucky couldn't place and wasn't sure he wanted to when she finally spoke. “Let me tell you about the time someone got shot through me while I was trying to get them to safety.” 

Bucky wasn't okay, and neither was Natasha, but they could be not okay together. For a little while, at least.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys. I am so sorry it took so long to update. Real life stuff got in the way, but I was finally able to get this chapter finished. I do have a plan for the rest of this story now and I know how many chapters we have to go. I tried to make this one a little longer so I hope you like it!

Clint couldn’t stop to worry about Natasha for longer than he would have liked. As soon as he had seen her he had known something was wrong, but he hadn’t wanted to push her to talk about something she was so obviously uncomfortable with. She had looked tired, so tired he couldn’t believe she was still standing. He was glad that Bucky, at least, had stayed with her while he did what he could to run the café. It wasn’t his job, but he didn’t care. He just wanted to take some of the pressure off of her. 

Luckily, it was slow enough that Wanda shooed him away from the register several minutes after Natasha had disappeared and told him to find their resident assassin. He had rolled his eyes, but stepped away and let her take over. Scanning the room quickly for the redhead, he almost started to panic when he didn’t spot her. Before he could really start to freak himself out, there was a hesitant touch on his shoulder and he found himself looking at the guy Natasha had attacked. 

The first thing Clint noticed was the hearing aids. Then he took in the thick framed black glasses, disheveled blond hair and worried bright blue eyes. He had to wonder if the guy was okay after all that had happened, but wasn’t really sure how to ask. 

As it turned out, he beat Clint to the punch. “Are you okay? I know you don’t work here, so that was awfully nice of you to help out like that.”

“Oh.” Clint wasn’t sure how to respond. He had just wanted to make sure everything would be fine when Natasha came back. Not that he had any intention of letting her work the rest of the day. He could just imagine the look she’d give him if he ever said that to her. “I mean, it’s not a big deal. My girlfriend owns the place.”

The guy - Clint thought they’d met before, but couldn’t remember his name. Something with an S, maybe? - smiled at him and inclined his head towards the booth he and Natasha usually sat in. Without waiting to see if Clint would follow him, he turned and walked over, taking the seat Clint usually did. He had to wonder if that had been on purpose. Something about the smirk on the guy’s face - seriously, what was his name? Sam? - made him think it was. 

He slid into the booth on Natasha’s side, unsure of what to expect. More than anything, he hoped she was okay. Or, if not okay, at least not alone. 

He heard the other guy say something, but lost in his thoughts as he was, he hadn’t caught the words. Clint looked up, an apology on his lips, only to freeze when he saw the other guy wincing, a hand pressed against the side of his head. Knowing that if he was deaf, or at least partially deaf, he might not hear Clint if he didn’t get his attention first, he reached out and touched his wrist. “Hey, you okay?” 

He blinked, looking startled. He smiled, maybe a little too quickly, and lowered his hand. “Yeah, I’m okay. Just hit my head a little earlier when…” He trailed off, looking sheepish. “Well. It was my fault, anyway.”

“I don’t think so. At least, not entirely. That guy with Tasha was your boyfriend, right? It kinda seemed like he had things under control or I would have tried to help.” 

“Yeah, that was Bucky. He… well, he has some experience with PTSD, so I think that’s why he tried to help.” He started aimlessly tapping his fingers on the table, but didn’t seem to be aware of it. “I don’t think we’ve really talked before, so I’m Steve.”

“I knew it started with an S!”

Steve blinked, apparently shocked silent at the outburst. 

Now it was Clint’s turn to smile sheepishly and rub the back of his neck. “Sorry. Didn’t mean to freak you out. I’m Clint.”

Steve laughed, which Clint took as a good sign. Hopefully the guy didn’t think he was just a random psycho Natasha had taken pity on and let hang around her. “That’s okay. You just startled me a bit.” He gestured to his ears, not quite meeting Clint’s gaze. “I’m partially deaf so sometimes loud noise startles me.”

“So am I. Well, not partially, but yeah. Deaf, I mean.” Clint had started signing without meaning to, but stopped when Steve covered Clint’s hands with his own. 

When Clint looked up at him, Steve was smiling. And wow, he really liked that smile. It lit up his entire face and made Clint want to smile back. “You’re rambling.” 

Clint felt his cheeks grow warm, but didn’t bother to move his hands from where they were under Steve’s. “I - uh, yeah. I do that sometimes.” 

“I don’t mind. It’s nice to meet someone else who’s deaf.” He almost looked startled at his own words, but before Clint could agree with him, he was speaking again. “Not that that’s the only reason it’s nice to meet you! I just -”

Clint turned his hands and gently curled his fingers around Steve’s. “Hey, it’s okay. Breathe.” Once Steve took several deep breaths and appeared to have calmed down, Clint couldn’t help but smirk. “I see I’m not the only one guilty of rambling here.”

Now Steve was blushing, but the smile on his face made Clint think maybe he didn't mind the teasing so much. Of course, from what Clint knew about Steve's boyfriend, he probably got teased a lot. 

Clint shot him a smile, hoping he would understand that Clint didn’t mean anything by it. He wasn’t sure what exactly was going on with Natasha since she wouldn’t talk to him, but he hoped that she was okay. Maybe he didn’t understand exactly what she was going through, but if the look in her eyes when she’d held that knife to Steve’s throat was any indication, she definitely had some form of PTSD. He hoped she would eventually talk to him, but from what he knew of her, he had a feeling she was more likely to bottle it up and pretend everything was fine. 

He knew better than to push her to talk about something she didn’t want to face, but if they were going to try out this dating thing, they needed to talk. Maybe not about her nightmares, or whatever was going on with her, but about keeping secrets. Clint wasn’t about to stay with someone who was just going to lie to him, even if it was to protect him. It wasn’t like he didn’t have skeletons in his closet, either. Granted, he hadn’t mentioned any of them to her, either, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t willing to open up to her. 

He and Steve had lapsed into a comfortable silence, with Steve pulling out a mess of pens and pencils and what looked like a drawing pad out of the bag he carried with him while Clint sat there and drank his coffee. Before long, he found himself watching Steve draw, but couldn’t quite make out what it was he was sketching. He didn’t want to break his concentration and ask, either, but he couldn’t help but watch. 

After a while - Clint wasn’t exactly sure how long, maybe a few minutes, but it could have been a lot longer considering how detailed Steve’s sketch was - the drawing began to resemble a very familiar redhead. Clint found himself thinking that Steve must have a pretty good memory to be able to draw Natasha from memory like that. Even if Clint could draw anywhere near as well as the other blond, his memory sucked on the best of days. 

He dragged his gaze away from Steve and found himself staring down at the drawing decorating his wrist. This time it was of a puppy that Clint had to admit looked a bit like Lucky, surrounded by a bunch of flowers. Again, Clint had to wonder just who it was who was doing these drawings. It sure as hell wasn’t him and Natasha had just snorted and rolled her eyes when he’d asked if it was her. She didn’t seem thrilled at the idea of them having another soulmate, but she had been warming up to him. By this point, they had officially been dating for about two months and he was confident she didn’t hate him like he had originally thought, and was in fact starting to like him a lot more than she was comfortable with. He had never outright asked how she felt, but the way she looked at him was different than how she looked at everyone else. 

Shaking himself out of his thoughts, Clint turned his attention back to Steve and the drawing he was working on. It seemed he had decided to take a break for a moment and had vacated the table. Clint blinked in surprise at not having noticed his departure, but rolled his eyes at himself when Steve reappeared with two mugs in hand. He shot Clint a knowing smile as he sat the mug down in front of him. 

“You seemed pretty lost in thought,” he said, a curious lilt to his voice. “Anything you’d like to talk about? For a deaf guy, I’m a pretty good listener.”

Clint had to crack a smile at the admittedly lame joke, even though he couldn’t say his jokes were any better. “It’s nothing, really. Just thinking about me and Natasha.”

Steve grinned and Clint almost started to regret saying anything. He was half-expecting an innuendo, but was pleasantly surprised when Steve said, “It has to be interesting, dating an assassin.”

Clint had just taken a drink of coffee and immediately choked on it, before somehow managing to swallow it before he leveled a “are you being serious right now” look at Steve. The little shit was just smiling innocently, like he hadn’t almost killed Clint.

“What?” Steve’s voice was nonchalant, his innocence way played up. Clint narrowed his eyes, but didn’t interrupt. “It’s a pretty popular rumor around here.”

Somehow Clint wasn’t surprised the rumor had made its way to Steve, but he would be surprised if Steve actually believed it.  _ Although _ , Clint thought with no small amount of humor,  _ he wasn’t sure it was entirely false, either _ . The way Natasha could sneak up on him like no one else or the way she sometimes looked at people like she could kill them with nothing more than her hands and pure annoyance made him think there was more to her than anyone thought. 

“Don’t tell me you really believe that.”

Steve’s lips quirked in a sort of half smile at Clint’s  words, but he didn’t respond. Instead, he just lifted his mug and took a drink. When he sat it down, Clint noticed a smudge of ink of Steve’s wrist. An awfully familiar smudge of ink that looked just like the smudge on his own wrist that had been a reminder to get some more dog treats for Lucky before he headed home for the day, but had been a casualty of the water he’d spilled on himself earlier. 

Clint must have stared just a little too long, because Steve gave him a wry smile and turned his wrist over to let Clint see the word “treats” next to the smudge. Clint almost laughed at the irony of Steve being his soulmate as he stared at what was so obviously his handwriting. Instead of telling Steve outright, he reached over and plucked one of the pens out of the mess next to Steve’s drawing pad. Steve watched him with a curious look, but didn’t ask what Clint was up to. 

The confusion in his gaze melted into a look of amazement as Clint drew a wobbly smiley face and the words “I can’t believe you can read my handwriting” on the palm of his left hand.

Steve stared at him for a long moment before he broke out into a wide grin and picked up another pen. He doodled a flower and another smiley face next to Clint’s nearly undecipherable message. “I could say your handwriting isn’t that bad, but I’d be lying.”   


Clint rolled his eyes, but knew better than to try to convince him otherwise. He knew how bad his handwriting was. It was a miracle he could read it, let alone anyone else. Kate had teased him about what a travesty his inability to write notes people could actually read was so many times he had lost count. 

Clint smiled sheepishly, running a hand through his hair. “It’s a work in progress.”

Steve raised his eyebrows, seemingly surprised at the comment, but didn’t ask him to clarify. If anything, it was likely Steve knew there was no way Clint’s handwriting would ever get any better than it was now. It wasn’t like Clint had never tried to make it more readable before. It just wasn’t possible, especially when writing on your own skin. 

Steve smiled, reaching over and placing his hand on Clint’s, squeezing his fingers before letting go and withdrawing his hand again. “I take it polyamory doesn’t phase you?” 

The question didn’t surprise Clint, but he did stare at Steve in a sort of shock for a second. He had expected some kind of conversation about it, but maybe not just then. Steve almost looked like he was going to apologize and try to change the subject, but Clint quickly said, “No. I’ve never really considered it before, but it’s never bothered me. What about you?”   


Steve shrugged, but he didn’t look uncomfortable. If anything, he looked relieved. Maybe he was as nervous as Clint was. “I’ve had relationships before. Nothing terribly serious, but, well. I knew I was poly before this.” He paused, the look in those blue eyes of his thoughtful. “I can’t say I know how Bucky or Natasha will react to this.”

Clint snorted before he could stop himself. “I don’t know about Bucky, but Natasha wasn’t exactly thrilled at having one soulmate. I can’t say what she’ll she say to having at least one more.”

Steve’s eyebrows drew together in what Clint thought had to be confusion. “We don’t know if Bucky is her soulmate. Or mine, for that matter.”  _ Come to think of it _ , Clint thought, pausing for a long moment. “Actually, I think this only proves that Natasha and I, you and Bucky, and me and you are soulmates. I think we’d have to test it to be sure if all of us are.”

“Oh.” Steve spoke quietly, voice barely above a whisper. Maybe he hadn’t considered that as an option. To be fair, Clint hadn’t either until he’d thought about it. “Well, I guess we’ll have to find that out.”

“You’re taking this rather well.” Clint said quietly. He still wasn’t sure how he was feeling about it and could only guess how Natasha and Bucky would react. He wasn’t exactly optimistic. 

Steve shrugged again, looking relaxed. “Well, we can’t change it. Might as well make the most of it.” He glanced back at his drawing pad then back at Clint. “Do you want to look at some of my drawings while we wait for Bucky and Natasha? No telling how long it’ll be.” 

“Sure.” Clint agreed, more than a little curious. Plus, what Steve had said was true. Natasha had been pretty freaked out before. He had no idea how long it would be before she was ready to face anyone. He tried not to let it bother him that she was obviously okay with being around Bucky after an episode like that, but not him. “I gotta admit, I was wondering where these drawings were coming from.” 

Steve tilted his head to the side, looking confused until Clint lifted his arm up to show Steve the doodle on his wrist. “Both Natasha and I have these, but we had no idea who was drawing them.”   


Steve blushed, even the tips of his ears turning red as he recognized the drawing. “Oh. Well. I - um. I hadn’t expected three people to be seeing those drawings.” He fiddled with his pencil for a moment before he finally met Clint’s gaze. “I hope they didn’t bother you too much.”   


Clint waved off his concern. “If you can put up with my random notes and Natasha’s weird Russian notes I think we can handle your cute little doodles. Besides,” Clint said with a smile. “I really like them.”

Clint hadn’t really helped with Steve’s blushing problem, but he couldn’t find it in him to mind when Steve looked so adorable sitting there stuttering so badly he had just given up and hid his head in his folded arms. Clint huffed out a laugh, before reaching over and taking Steve’s hand. “You don’t have to be so embarrassed.”   


Steve muttered something that Clint thought sounded a lot like “someone kill me now”, but he couldn't be sure. His hearing aids helped a lot, but he still relied on lip reading and sign language more often than not. 

It took a few minutes and a quite a bit of coaxing from Clint for Steve to finally calm down and hand over his sketch pad. Clint had to smile as he flipped through the drawings of Bucky, some dogs, and even a couple of him and Natasha. There were a few of people he didn’t recognize, but when he asked who they are, Steve was quick to tell him about his friends Sharon and Maria who were like family to him. He also flipped to a few of his sister and brother, telling Clint all he wanted to know about the people close to him. 

Clint was still worried about Natasha, but he had to hope she was okay with Bucky. Meanwhile, he was having fun sitting there and talking to Steve. He didn’t know what was going to happen next, but it was enough just to enjoy the moment he was in. 


End file.
